On September 28, the “Risk-Free Road Traffic” Expert Center with the support of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation held the round table discussion “Safety as a New Trend in Clothing. Relevance of Integrating Reflective Elements in Designing and Production of Children’s Clothing”. The round table was organized as part of the 23rd International Exhibition “The World of Childhood 2017”.

Before the start of expert discussion, manufacturers of children's clothing demonstrated children's clothing with reflective elements to the discussion participants. The models were presented by the SweetBerry and Mamasvet companies. Reflective elements on the presented specimens were integrated both in children’s clothing and in accessories (covers for backpacks).

Opening the expert discussion, Olesya Kuthurova, the Project Head of the “Risk-Free Road Traffic” Expert Center, noted that in the beginning of autumn and winter period the issue of using reflective elements is especially pressing. According to statistics, a significant number of road accidents involving pedestrian children occur from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

The data of the State Motor Vehicle Inspectorate of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs for the first six months of 2017 shows an increasing number of RTAs involving children: 10,038 RTAs involving children under 16 years old, including 3,763 RTAs involving kids on pedestrian crossings.

According to Olesya Kuthurova, “The number of road accidents could be reduced, if children had reflective elements in their clothes. They make clothes both attractive and fashionable for young people, but most important, they make their owners visible on the road.”

The use of reflective elements in children’s clothing is supported not only by manufacturers and experts, but also by executive bodies. Continuing the discussion, Olga Pozdynakova, the Senior Inspector of the Department of Public Awareness in the Field of Road Safety and Children’s Road Accident Injuries of the Main Directorate for Road Traffic Safety of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs, told about the measures taken by her agency to reduce the number of RTAs involving children. In particular, she stated that 6 constituent entities of the Russian Federation held in 2017 a social campaign “Light Up!” to promote the use of retro-reflective elements in clothing.

According to Olga Pozdynakova, the main question for today is the control over the use of reflective elements by children.

Continuing the discussion, Larisa Sanatovskaya, the Executive Director of the National Parents’ Association for Social Support and Protection of Family Values, noted that reflective elements must be not only integrated in clothes, but also it is necessary to use accessories, such as wristbands and covers for backpacks, stickers, etc. “Today in many regions kids often use reflective elements as an element of culture: they conduct master classes for their manufacture and create a theater of shadows and light. This is an additional promotion factor for such important and simple road safety elements as reflectors”, Larisa Sanatovskaya said.

Concluding her speech, she expressed a fairly simple and clear idea, or appeal: “without refractors, you have neither chance to realize yourself, nor evolve a personality.”